ILMOU

QUOTE (maggsmaggs @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 10:19 AM) Rangel Ravelo would be interesting to me. This guy. And ask him if he thinks the org appreciates his high OBP and approach. And if he thinks he can play other positions.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 06:34 PM) lol, my boy Wilkins is ridiculously hot. Or he's what others might call a "Kris Bryant slump" 1.335 OPS in July. Even Cooperstown Kris would take that. Davidson K's are spiking again. I think we're looking at a guy with a poor-man's-Mark Reynolds-ceiling, but more likely Mike Olt. Contact issues are major. Would love to be wrong.

QUOTE (oldsox @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 05:36 PM) If Sergio had spent the season in Charlotte, I don't think his record would be as good as Thompson's. Of that, I am 99.9999% certain. By the way, who mgave that contract to Sergio, Kenny or Toronto? KW, and it felt like a bargain at the time, thus making the trade seem even more one-sided in their favor.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 05:25 PM) Time to get back on the winning track and who better than Chris (Condor ) Sale to do it. Rock 'Em Sock 'Em White Sox ! Starting lineup Eaton 8, Ramirez 6, Abreu 3 , Dunn DH , Viciedo 9, Gillaspie 5, De Aza 7, Beckham 4, Flowers 2, Sale 1 Damn, Gordo not traded yet.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 04:49 PM) If this franchise is sub .500 for 3 straight years, we have really big problems. Yeah, lengthy rebuilds really aren't in the team charter.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 03:24 PM) It would be about a $5 million price tag for the claiming team. I don't think it happens. Just pay the freight and get a marginal prospect instead. If that's even possible.

QUOTE (WKamm @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 03:59 PM) Beckham's defense is too valuable for just Milone. Throw in Freiman and Pomeranz, and I'd be OK with it. Green?

QUOTE (OsweGo-Go Sox @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 12:45 PM) Also, all week I'll be posting some "Big Hurt Facts" from my Twitter account... From '69 expansion through his last season in '08, Frank Thomas is second in Fangraphs oWAR, trailing only Bonds. From the stock market crash through the end of the century, Frank is behind only Williams, Ruth, Gehrig and Mantle in wRC+. Frank is the only RH in #MLB history with 10k PAs and a career slash of .300/.400/.500. One of only SEVEN overall. So in another words 1st, not counting lab rats.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 12:53 PM) I have no doubt they think Micah will be a player for them, but it is obvious to me that we are talking about probably late 2015, maybe even 2016 right now. There is no good reason to rush the kid right now. For my two cents, both Semien and Sanchez are clearly in front of Johnson. I doubt it will be that long because Micah hasn't taken that long to adjust to the other levels he's advanced to, but we shall see. As soon as the org sees him taking walks sufficiently, he'll be here, imo.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 10:21 AM) Konerko is the very definition of 20 speed. We've all seen the SS go into the 3rd base hole to field a ball where 99% of MLB hitters get an infield hit, and Konerko still gets thrown out by two strides. I still don't think this even should surprise anyone for how bad PK's baserunning is. We've seen it for a decade and a half now. Ever since the hip thing, he has been in the slowest runners in all of baseball. Yep. He's literally the worst baserunner I've ever seen, with the one caveat being that I never saw Rich "El Guapo" Garces run the bases. Didn't need a stat to tell me that, but as Eminor said, quantifying how much it hurts run scoring is good info to have.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 12:11 PM) Micah Johnson is not being blocked by anyone. He is not ready for the majors yet. Even if Beckham is traded, he will not be the guy called up. This is likely true, and it is also likely temporary, imo. I think they want Micah to take the 2B job eventually, even if he isn't ready for it today. If he finishes the Charlotte season strongly, his Sept callup will be an audition. Meanwhile, Marcus will take the majority of 2B reps for the rest of the year, and also get looks at 3B vs, lefties, SS and OF. If Micah steps up, Marcus will be in a super-utility role for at least part of next season while they evaluate his ability to take over at SS. Just my guess as to how things will unfold. Unless Lexi gets traded soon, which I'm not expecting.

QUOTE (beautox @ Jul 21, 2014 -> 08:01 AM) I'm ready to move forward with both Semien and Johnson. If Conor is for real I wouldn't be opposed to moving Davidson for a down on their luck major league hitter like Yasmani Grandal seeing how the padres need a 3B for their future, all though defensive wonderkid Hedges has struggled at AA. Marcus for july has gotten back to what I think most who are in his corner believe his potential to be in terms of BB and K%s .323/.421/.631 - 1.052 10BB/12K As for Micah he has progressively gotten better every month he has spent at AAA, which seems to be his MO. May & June were relatively similar in terms of production for him and now he is breaking out in July to the tune of .346/.370/.442 - .813 When both Beckham and Ramirez eventually get traded I would like to see Marcus brought back into the #2 hole and Micah broken in around 8th or 9th in the lineup. This is the camp I'm in. We're all busy here comparing the relative merits of the two, perhaps because we anticipate the 2B opening soon and want our guy to get the first crack. I happen to believe that Micah has a little higher ceiling due to the one dynamic tool and is a little behind Marcus in overall development due to injuries through his career arc. Who gets the first shot is not the be-all, end-all for me. I think there's room for both, and soon, because I anticipate Leury's days are also numbered.

Sad day. Sad week. I'm probably the biggest Rockford Files fan here - one of the great characters in TV history, all Garner. His exchanges with Police Lts. Chapman and Diehl were pure gold. Also loved JohnnyW - before his health deteriorated, he was lightning. Think I'll cue up his version of Highway 61 during my run this afternoon.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jul 20, 2014 -> 02:39 PM) lulz tie game When Semien's on the team again in a few weeks, if he isn't in the lineup, this is where you PH him for Conor.

Trade pieces trying their damnedest to make themselves untradeable.

War is the new slavery. That is all.

QUOTE (flavum @ Jul 19, 2014 -> 08:23 PM) No second guessing...I'm not a fan of this pitching change. Is JakeP hurt? Will this save increase Putnam's trade value? What gives?

Hard to believe we have catchers named Zach Fish and Zach Fisher on the same team.

QUOTE (flavum @ Jul 19, 2014 -> 07:02 PM) The last 12 days of De Aza in a Sox uniform. Act NOW! And get a free Gordon Beckham along with this set of marvelous steakknives. A $200 value. NOW how much would you pay? But wait, there's more...

No more than 12 days of Gordo left. Let the countdown begin.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jul 19, 2014 -> 03:06 PM) I may not be Dan Bernstein but I bet my input is equally as useful ... you know I was going to follow this statement with a baghead emoticon but to my utter shock the baghead emoticon is GONE Don't sell yourself short. The gunk I picked out of my eye this morning is more useful than Bernstein.

QUOTE (maggsmaggs @ Jul 19, 2014 -> 01:35 PM) I think he can be a solid starter at the ML but I am not convinced he is untouchable. Personally I think Semien's skill-set translate better to the Majors than Micah. Between the two, I'll take Semien who is probably superior in all aspects of the game except speed. The speed is exciting of Micah for sure but I think there is still a lot left to be desired. I believe that both are in the long-term plans. I'm not convinced Micah's untouchable either, but I haven't heard Hahn put that label on anyone else in the minors. Semien still needs to hit RHP better, imo.

QUOTE (maggsmaggs @ Jul 19, 2014 -> 11:25 AM) I think they are too high on Micah Johnson. He looks like a solid player, but if you look at his overall line this year, it is not that great. .312 BA, .369 OBP, .417 SLG, .787 OPS and 18 SBs to 11 CSs. Even though Semien is not eligible, I have no hesitation thinking he will be the better pro. Micah has played a significant % of his time in Charlotte with a bad hamstring. His July is looking damn good. It's also encouraging that he's hitting lefties better than ever before. For all the talk of "hands-of-stone", he has 8 total errors between the two levels while having much more range than Beckham, supposedly. And it isn't just Hawk that likes him, we've heard the word untouchable. I like Semien too, though.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jul 19, 2014 -> 11:47 AM) Law was against Abreu to the Sox? I don't remember that He seemed to side with the "slider-speed bat" nonsense that some scouts were suggesting.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jul 19, 2014 -> 10:02 AM) Yeah this completely. No team, but especially not us, should be upset about penciling in a quality LH high contact stick somewhere in the 5-6 range in the lineup for the next few seasons. No, Gillaspie isn't a complete offensive force, but guess what? Few players are anyway. If we trade Gillaspie then we'll *still* need power and we will also need his skillset. Right now the biggest need in the lineup is a young LH power hitter who is more of a #3/#4 type than a Dunn. We need someone that doesn't disappear for a month at a time and that can put the bat on the ball when the situation dictates. I'm not sure where Hahn is going to find this guy either because they are pretty hard to find, but we need him. Really Thome was our last true prototypical middle of the order lefty and that was only for a few years, and we had a drought before that, too. Lastly I just think it's funny how people will look at Connor and think "regression!" and then look at Davidson and suppose improvement. Matt Davidson is not currently a Major League player and would get eaten alive at the MLB level by MLB pitching, and I'm not sure why anyone in his right mind would think that his persistent MiLB contact problems would somehow diminish against a vastly improved level of competition. Davidson is a pretty flawed prospect, he was when we got him, and he hasn't done anything to make those concerns go away. IMO our backup to Connor ATM is Marcus Semien and it's not even close. Davidson is nowhere near the picture. Agreed on all points, but I also wouldn't mind seeing our highest OBP directly in front of Abreu in the two hole vs. RHP.